Phantom 3 Pro - Image/Video Quality

Specialist · Jan 10, 2016

Hi friends, i've searched and seen similar posts in the past but they didn't help.

I had my DJI Pro last week and have done 4 flights with it now. I have to say i'm not at all impressed with the quality of the photos, all photos taken so far seem to be quite blurry/soft. I've used both auto mode and manual mode using the histogram as a guide. Looking at other people pictures on the internet they seem to be vibrant and crisp. Yesterday it was fairly bright with a bit of cloud so I don't think light is the issue. (ps..yes i took the film off the front of the lens)

For the video - this doesn't look too bad (but not on par with my GoPro Silver) even though the sun wasn't out yesterday whenever I looked toward the bright clouds the video just went very dark and on play back via the PC it was hard to make out any of the footage.

Just wondering if anyone has come across this or has any advice. Thanks in advance.

Jericho · Jan 10, 2016

Sounds to me that either you have the wrong settings or the camera is faulty, have you spoken to DJI?

Jean · Jan 10, 2016

The small camera sensor is not going to give you the quality or resolution of a larger sensor. Are you using the DNG option? Can you maybe post a link to one of the better photos you have in full size (and preferably DNG) so that we can get an idea of what you consider to be "quite blurry/soft"?

rockydog · Jan 10, 2016

As far as the dark video is concerned, did you realise that you can adjust the area the meter is reading from by tapping on the screen......if you're facing bright sky, tap on the lower half of the screen, and you'll see the exposure change. (or tilt the camera so the horizon is towards the top of the screen)

With The Birds · Jan 10, 2016

Jean said:
The small camera sensor is not going to give you the quality or resolution of a larger sensor. Are you using the DNG option? Can you maybe post a link to one of the better photos you have in full size (and preferably DNG) so that we can get an idea of what you consider to be "quite blurry/soft"?

+1... If you post an image or two we will be in a better position to comment. The images arent up to the quality of a current SLR but they are crttainly good enoigj to produce nice prints with a bit of post processing.

msinger · Jan 10, 2016

Specialist said:
all photos taken so far seem to be quite blurry/soft

You'll need to be closer if you want more detail. Maybe try shooting a panoramic composition.

Specialist · Jan 10, 2016

It maybe that i'm a little fussy (it has been said)

as i'm into my photography and using DSLR's.
Today with the sun shining the images have come out much better than yesterday... I've attached some. Still if i compare to many I see on the internet or instagram they don't appear as crisp/sharp unless people are doing lots of post tweaking.

Image 1 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/rj4sgpr0920f8uracz9r4wlkc0446miv
Image 1 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/cbk3a65ay41jlxsq1nufeuy27fh1t659

Image 2 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/m7l5sqdt1f36ghjzx8kxkbejfmluvn67
Image 2 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/ttqk3vlpofdvf4jprbal5xejqthznd4m

Image 3 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/tff1qupwfc7xwsp8izkscrkufw2s2h9d
Image 3 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/ypxgtsv6vkvlruwz6judiwj7p42xruux

Many Thanks

Specialist · Jan 10, 2016

msinger said:
You'll need to be closer if you want more detail. Maybe try shooting a panoramic composition.

Some of those images are awesome on that panoramic composition link msinger .. thank you

msinger · Jan 10, 2016

Yep, he does amazing work. In that post, he talks about posting a follow up post to discuss how he processes the images. I'm still waiting for that post

nookly · Jan 10, 2016

I will join the thread and is that quality is ok? I applied a bit of vibrance effect but what about whole image sharpness? I was filming at 4k 24fps and scaled film to 1080p. I'm also facing tilted gimbal problem and i cropped the image in one scene. This was shot in my second flight. EDIT ok this video is rubbish

gonna make a new one when the weather clears out

fort384 · Jan 10, 2016

Yes, I agree with the comments about stills not being nearly as high quality as what you might achieve with a DSLR. I think a couple of the images you posted might be a tad underexposed? Just my opinion. I actually find the camera on the P3 Pro to be a bit too sharp, and pull the sharpness setting down manually. I think manually setting WB helps as well. And lots of work in post! But no matter what, there is just not a lot of DR to work with even with the raw images, in my opinion. Still, really pleasing results are achievable, and I think you are on your way there.

EDIT: Should have added, I think it's easier to blow the sky out a bit in order to get good detail and not crush the shadows on the ground... bright sky much easier to fix in post vs. crushed shadows where there is no detail to manipulate.

Specialist · Jan 10, 2016

fort384 said:
Yes, I agree with the comments about stills not being nearly as high quality as what you might achieve with a DSLR. I think a couple of the images you posted might be a tad underexposed? Just my opinion. I actually find the camera on the P3 Pro to be a bit too sharp, and pull the sharpness setting down manually. I think manually setting WB helps as well. And lots of work in post! But no matter what, there is just not a lot of DR to work with even with the raw images, in my opinion. Still, really pleasing results are achievable, and I think you are on your way there.

EDIT: Should have added, I think it's easier to blow the sky out a bit in order to get good detail and not crush the shadows on the ground... bright sky much easier to fix in post vs. crushed shadows where there is no detail to manipulate.

Thanks fort - how do you bring the sharpness up/down.. When I switch to manual I can only change the iso/time. ?

sdharris · Jan 10, 2016

Your sample images look about normal for unprocessed P3 output, what do you have to process, anything like Lightroom or Photoshop?

Jericho · Jan 10, 2016

Specialist said:
It maybe that i'm a little fussy (it has been said) as i'm into my photography and using DSLR's.
Today with the sun shining the images have come out much better than yesterday... I've attached some. Still if i compare to many I see on the internet or instagram they don't appear as crisp/sharp unless people are doing lots of post tweaking.

Image 1 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/rj4sgpr0920f8uracz9r4wlkc0446miv
Image 1 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/cbk3a65ay41jlxsq1nufeuy27fh1t659

Image 2 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/m7l5sqdt1f36ghjzx8kxkbejfmluvn67
Image 2 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/ttqk3vlpofdvf4jprbal5xejqthznd4m

Image 3 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/tff1qupwfc7xwsp8izkscrkufw2s2h9d
Image 3 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/ypxgtsv6vkvlruwz6judiwj7p42xruux

Many Thanks

I think your photos look awesome m8!!

fort384 · Jan 10, 2016

This video does a good job explaining the various modes, limitations, etc.

It shows where the various settings are in the DJI Go App.

Trackman1 · Jan 10, 2016

Specialist said:
It maybe that i'm a little fussy (it has been said) as i'm into my photography and using DSLR's.
Today with the sun shining the images have come out much better than yesterday... I've attached some. Still if i compare to many I see on the internet or instagram they don't appear as crisp/sharp unless people are doing lots of post tweaking.

Image 1 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/rj4sgpr0920f8uracz9r4wlkc0446miv
Image 1 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/cbk3a65ay41jlxsq1nufeuy27fh1t659

Image 2 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/m7l5sqdt1f36ghjzx8kxkbejfmluvn67
Image 2 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/ttqk3vlpofdvf4jprbal5xejqthznd4m

Image 3 - JPG - https://app.box.com/s/tff1qupwfc7xwsp8izkscrkufw2s2h9d
Image 3 - DNG - https://app.box.com/s/ypxgtsv6vkvlruwz6judiwj7p42xruux

Many Thanks

I get the DNG files at .52Megapixel and the JPG's at 9.0MP. Is that correct.
I thought it had a 12mp camera?

sdharris · Jan 10, 2016

Spent a couple of minutes to up the exposure by 0.5 and sharpened with something like a radius of 1.2 and then an opacity of about 60% so that it does not like over sharpened. Its still not perfect but it does show the file has potential given your own time and patience with it.

I think your camera is fine, just needs a little practise with the settings.

Specialist · Jan 10, 2016

sdharris said:
Your sample images look about normal for unprocessed P3 output, what do you have to process, anything like Lightroom or Photoshop?

I have paint.net

.. A bit rubbish I know but am going to look into lightroom or photoshop but aren't they quite expensive?

Specialist · Jan 10, 2016

sdharris said:
Spent a couple of minutes to up the exposure by 0.5 and sharpened with something like a radius of 1.2 and then an opacity of about 60% so that it does not like over sharpened. Its still not perfect but it does show the file has potential given your own time and patience with it.

I think your camera is fine, just needs a little practise with the settings.

View attachment 40025

Thanks sdharris, yes i think that does look a little better than the original. with a 4k/12mp camera I just didn't expect to have to do much post processing, i don't tend to do a lot with my GoPro images as more often than not i'm happy with them.

Specialist · Jan 10, 2016

fort384 said:
This video does a good job explaining the various modes, limitations, etc.

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It shows where the various settings are in the DJI Go App.